Edge form system for forming simulated stone coping

ABSTRACT

An edge form system has a molded liner and a form board. The molded liner has a textured imprinting on the inner surface for forming a simulated stone coping and a first interlocking element. The form board has a base for mounting the form board on a vertical structure, a coping support wall, a liner receiver, and a second interlocking element for interlocking with the first interlocking element.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application for a utility patent is a continuation of a previouslyfiled utility patent application, currently pending, having theapplication Ser. No. 14/054,053, filed Oct. 15, 2013 and thisapplication claims priority to previously filed utility patentapplication, currently pending, having the application Ser. No.14/042,028, filed Sep. 30, 2013.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to forms for forming a coping, and moreparticularly to an edge form system for forming simulated stone coping.

2. Description of Related Art

There are several examples of polystyrene forms that are used to formthe front face of a coping. Examples of such prior art forms include areshown in Deason (U.S. Pat. No. 3,526,070, and U.S. Pat. No. D284,971),as well as to Stegmeier (U.S. Pat. No. 4,574,017 and U.S. Pat. No.5,695,586). Various other references include the following: Coates, U.S.Pat. No. 6,725,469; Epple, U.S. Pat. No. 5,680,730; Smith, U.S. Pat. No.7,861,471; and Dahowski, U.S. Pat. No. 4,457,119. The above-describedreferences are hereby incorporated by reference in full.

The prior art teaches form boards that are mounted on an edge of a poolfor forming a shaped coping when the deck is poured. However, the priorart does not teach a form board that receives a liner that is molded toimpart a realistic stone texturing, or other form of texturing, thatcannot be achieved with prior art forms. The prior art also does notteach an interlocking mechanism for interlocking the molded liner withthe form board, so that the liner is held securely in place without theuse of tapes or adhesives. The present invention fulfills these needsand provides further advantages as described in the following summary.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention teaches certain benefits in construction and usewhich give rise to the objectives described below.

The present invention provides an edge form system for forming asimulated stone coping above a vertical structure. The edge form systemhas a molded liner and a form board. The molded liner has an innersurface and an outer surface, each connected by a top edge and a bottomedge, a textured imprinting on the inner surface for forming thesimulated stone coping, and a first interlocking element formed in thebottom edge. The form board has a base for mounting the form board onthe vertical structure, a coping support wall extending upwardly fromthe base, the coping support wall having a support surface. The base andthe support surface of the support wall together form a liner receivershaped to receive the molded liner. There is a second interlockingelement in the base and/or the coping support wall shaped to interlockwith the first interlocking element of the molded liner.

A primary objective of the present invention is to provide an edge formsystem having advantages not taught by the prior art.

Another objective is to provide an edge form system for quickly andeasily forming realistic simulated stone coping.

Another objective is to provide an edge form system that includes amolded liner that includes interlocking elements for locking the moldedliner against the form board during use, without the use of tape oradhesives.

A further objective is to provide an edge form system that includesmolded liners that may be reused.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following more detailed description, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way ofexample, the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings illustrate the present invention. In suchdrawings:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of an edge formsystem, illustrating one embodiment of a molded liner and a form board;

FIG. 2 is an exploded side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the edge form system operativelyinstalled on a bond beam of a swimming pool for forming a simulatedstone coping on top of the bond beam of the swimming pool;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the molded liner being peeled from thesimulated stone coping once it has cured; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the edge formsystem, illustrating the edge form system being held in place on avertical structure by a spring clamp.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The above-described drawing figures illustrate the invention, an edgeform system 10 for forming a simulated stone coping 18 above a verticalstructure 12 such as a bond beam of a swimming pool.

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the edge formsystem 10, illustrating one embodiment of a molded liner 20 and a formboard 30. FIG. 2 is an exploded side elevational view thereof. Asillustrated in FIGS. 1-2, the molded liner 20 has an inner surface 21,an outer surface 22, a top edge 23, and a bottom edge 24. The innersurface 21 includes a textured imprinting 26 that is molded or otherwiseformed so that when concrete is poured adjacent to it, the concrete willretain the texturing so that it resembles stone or some other desirablesurface shape and texture. The textured imprinting 26 may be shaped forimparting a rough stone-like appearance to the concrete poured once ithas dried. The style of texture may be of any sort, including roughstone, brick and mortar, or any other pattern, and may include any formof patterns, words, images, etc.

In this embodiment, the outer surface 22, opposite the inner surface 21,abuts the form board 30 in such a way that the molded liner 20 is heldin place during the pouring and curing of the concrete. The top edge 23may be generally aligned with the top of the form board 30, though thisis not necessary, and in this embodiment the top edge 23 extendsoutwardly to impart a gentle curve to the top edge of the simulatedstone coping 18 (shown in FIGS. 3 and 4).

In the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the form board 30 has a base 40 formounting the form board on the vertical structure 12, and a copingsupport wall 50 extending upwardly from the base 40. The base 40includes a top surface 48, a support surface 52, and a liner receiver 60which is the space formed by the top surface 48 of the base 40 and thesupport surface 52 of the coping support wall 50, and is where themolded liner 20 is seated. When seated in the liner receiver 60, thetextured imprinting 26 of the molded liner 20 is exposed, and the outersurface 22 abuts the support surface 52, with the bottom edge 24 of themolded liner 20 resting on the form board 30 which supports the moldedliner 20.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the molded liner 20 further includesa first interlocking element 25 for locking the molded liner 20 againstthe form board 30. The first interlocking element 25 may be located atthe bottom edge 24 of the molded liner 20 and may be used to properlyseat the molded liner 20 within the form board 30. In one embodiment,the first interlocking element 25 is a ridge that extends lengthwisealong the bottom edge 24 of the molded liner 20.

Also as shown in FIGS. 1-2, the form board 30 includes a secondinterlocking element 70 that is adapted to interlock with the firstinterlocking element 25. In this embodiment, the second interlockingelement 70 may be a groove shaped to lockingly engage the ridge 25 tohold the molded liner 20 in place. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, whenproperly seated, the shapes of the ridge 25 and the groove 70 preventmovement of the molded liner 20 while positioned in the liner receiver60.

In another embodiment, the first interlocking element 25 may include aplurality of posts or other forms of interlocking elements, along with acorresponding plurality receivers that form the second interlockingelement 70 on the top surface 48 shaped to receive and lockingly engagethe plurality of the first interlocking elements 25. The elements may bereversed, and/or replaced with any other forms of structure orstructures that interlock in a similar manner for holding the liner 20in place. Other forms of interlocking mechanisms may be posts and holes,triangular wedges and triangular-shaped receivers, locking pins, elasticprotrusions from the molded liner 20 which may be pried from thereceiver liner receiver 60 on the form board 30, or others known tothose skilled in the art, all being equivalent and within the scope ofthe present invention. In some embodiments, the liner 20 is held inplace without the use of tape or adhesives. Other methods of holding themolded liner 20 in place on the form board 30 may also be used,including the use of an adhesive, fasteners, ties, locks, clamps, etc.known to those skilled in the art. Also, any number, orientation, andcombination thereof, of the first interlocking elements 25 and thecorresponding second interlocking elements 70 may be used, suchvariations considered equivalent and within the scope of the presentinvention.

The coping support wall 50 is a portion of the form board 30 which mayextend upwardly from the base 40 and acts as a support structure forkeeping the molded liner 20 in the proper position. Also, the copingsupport wall 50 should be of sufficient thickness (or width) to supportthe pressure due to the concrete prior to setting. Such thickness may bedetermined by those skilled in the art and will vary according to thematerial of which the form board 30 is made and the height of the moldedliner 20 to be supported when concrete is poured. The support surface 52of the coping support wall 50 abuts the outer surface 22 of the moldedliner 20. The support surface 52 and the outer surface 22 may begenerally smooth, for making solid contact and a secure hold on themolded liner 20. In one embodiment, the outer surface 22 and the supportsurface 52 are planar, but other embodiments may have alternate shapes,including curved, ridged, segmented, etc.

In this embodiment, the base 40 may include one or more mountingsurfaces 42 for mounting the base 40 to the vertical structure 12 (shownin FIG. 3). The mounting surfaces 42 may be separated by one or morelateral kerfs 46. The mounting surfaces 42 may include an adhesive layer44 for mounting the base 40 to the vertical structure 12. Any kind ofbonding agent known to those skilled in the art may be used, includingepoxy, glue, or other tacky substance which may form a strong, butpreferably removable, bond between the form board 30 and the verticalstructure 12. Additionally, peel-removable tape 45 (e.g., wax paper orother removable layer) may be used to cover the adhesive layer 44 toprotect it, and removed prior to mounting the form board 30 on thevertical structure 12.

In the present embodiment, three of the adhesive layers 44 are includedon three of the mounting surfaces 42, rather than the usual two. Theinclusion of a third mounting surface 42 provides additional adhesivestrength so that it is possible to mount the form board 30 without theuse of tie-wires. It is preferred to avoid the use of tie wires whenusing the molded liner 20, because the molded liner 20 interferes withthe positioning of the tie wire therethrough. This is an improvementover the prior art, which had previously considered the inclusion of tiewires to be important to properly supporting the form board 30, so thatthe form board 30 was able to support the weight of the concrete.

The lateral kerfs 46 are slots where material has been removed from thebase 40 for the purpose of adding flexibility to the form board 30, sothat the form board 30 can fit around curves in the shape of the pool orother structure. The number of the lateral kerfs 46 and the mountingsurfaces 42 are variable and depend on the strength needed to hold thebase 40 in place on the vertical structure 12 and also the structurallimitations of the vertical structure 12, for instance if there was anobstruction that limited the overall height of the combination of themounting surfaces 42 and the lateral kerfs 46. In one embodiment, theremay be three of the mounting surfaces 42, with two of the lateral kerfs46 separating them. In other embodiments, there may be more or fewer ofthe mounting surfaces 42 and the lateral kerfs 46. The number,placement, and shape or depth of the lateral kerfs 46 may be determinedby those skilled in the art and should be considered equivalent andwithin the scope of the present invention.

Also, as shown in FIGS. 1-2, the form board 30 may also include areceiving recess 80 for receiving an elongate protective strip 90 (shownin FIG. 3). In one embodiment, the receiving recess 80 may be formed atthe intersection of the uppermost of the mounting surfaces 42 and thetop surface 48. The receiving recess 80 is discussed in greater detailbelow. In other embodiments, there may be no need for the elongateprotective strip 90. In this case, the form board 30 may not have thereceiving recess 80, but may be as described above in all otherrespects.

In one embodiment, the height of the mounting surfaces 42 may be about1.9 cm. (0.75 inches), and the height of the lateral kerfs 46 may beabout 1.3 cm. (0.5 inches). In another embodiment the height of themounting surfaces 42 may be between 4.0 cm. (1.6 inches) and 1.0 cm.(0.4 inches) and the height of the lateral kerfs 46 may be between 3.0cm (1.18 inches) and 0.5 cm. (0.2 inches). In another embodiment theheight of the mounting surfaces 42 may be between 10.0 cm. (4 inches)and 5.0 cm. (2 inches) and the height of the lateral kerfs 46 may bebetween 7.0 cm (2.75 inches) and 3.0 cm. (1.18 inches). The term “about”as used in describing dimensions or ranges indicates an uncertainty of10%. Other sizes of the lateral kerfs 46 and the mounting surfaces 42may be used by those skilled in the art, depending the support needed,the number and placement of the lateral kerfs 46 and the mountingsurfaces 42, etc. and should be considered equivalent and within thescope of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the edge form system 10 operativelyinstalled on a bond beam of a swimming pool forming the simulated stonecoping 18 of the swimming pool. Here we discuss one possible method ofuse of the present embodiment of the edge form system 10. Other methodsof use known to those skilled in the art may also be employed andconsidered equivalent to the description below. As shown in FIG. 3, theswimming pool forms the vertical structure 12, which also includes atile layer 14.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the method of assembly of the edge form system10 begins with mounting the form boards 30 on the vertical structure 12,in this case completely around the pool. In this embodiment, the formboards 30 are mounted via the adhesive layers 44 on each of the mountingsurfaces 42. The peel-removable tape 45 (shown in FIG. 2) is removedfrom the mounting surfaces 42 to expose the adhesive layers 44 on eachof the mounting surfaces 42, and this is then used to mount the formboard 30 on the vertical structure 12. Other mounting mechanisms orsystems may also be used, as discussed in greater detail below, and anyalternative methods or systems should be considered within the scope ofthe present invention.

Once the form boards 30 have been installed, the molded liner 20 isplaced within the liner receiver 60 of the form boards 30, asillustrated in FIGS. 1-3. The first interlocking element 25 interlockswith the second interlocking element 70, to hold the molded liner 20 inplace on the form board 30. Release agents may be added to the moldedliner 20 to enable the later removal of the molded liner 20, and it ishelpful if the interlocking elements 25 and 70 enable interlockingwithout the use of any adhesives, tape, etc.

In this embodiment, an elongate protective strip 90 may be positioned inthe receiving recess 80. The elongate protective strip 90 may include ananchor 92 and a protective wall 94 that extends downwardly from theanchor 92. The anchor 92 of the elongate protective strip 90 is capturedby the poured concrete, such that the protective wall 94 extendsdownwardly to cover the crack between the coping and the bond beam ofthe pool, and to also cover a top edge of the tile layer 14. Such tilelayer formations are very common in forming attractive edging in aswimming pool, Jacuzzi, decorative pond, or other similar constructions,where the edge form system 10 is intended for use.

Concrete is then poured into the space defined on one side by the moldedliner 20, forming a concrete fill 16 that forms the coping of the poolor other structure. When the concrete fill 16 cures, the molded liner 20provides the texture of stone (or other desirable texture) to thesurface of the concrete. For purposes of this application, the term“concrete” is hereby broadly defined to include not only concrete butalso any form of plastic, resin, composite, or any other form ofequivalent material or any generally pourable and malleable materialwherein after appropriate curing, drying, or setting will form a rigidstructure that retains the desired molded pattern or texture.

After the concrete fill 16 has cured to the satisfaction of the skilleduser (though it may not be fully hardened should additional sculptingneed to occur) the form board 30 is stripped from the vertical structure12, breaking the contact at the adhesive layer 44, and the form board 30may be removed for disposal (not shown). Afterwards, the molded liner 20may be removed.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the molded liner 20 being peeled fromthe simulated stone coping 18 once it has cured. As shown in FIG. 4, thetextured imprinting 26 on the inner surface 21 of the molded liner 20leaves its impression on the concrete fill 16, which in this case isshown as a rough-hewn stone appearance with rounded corners, thusforming the simulated stone coping 18. Also as shown in FIG. 4, theanchor 92 of the elongate protective strip 90 is captured by theconcrete fill, so that the elongate protective strip 90 covers the crackbetween the coping and the bond beam of the pool.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the edge formsystem 10, illustrating the edge form system 10 being held in place onthe vertical structure 12 by a spring clamp 19. In this embodiment, apair of the form boards 30 may be clamped onto the vertical structure12, shown as a concrete block, with the spring clamp 19. In thisembodiment, each of the form boards 30 has the molded liner 20 in placein the liner receiver 60. Once clamped, the two edge form systems 10create a space for pouring the concrete fill 16 (shown in FIGS. 3 & 4).In this embodiment, the base 40 includes a lip 100 which may extend pastthe bottom edge 24 of the molded liner 20. The lip 100 has a top lipsurface 102 and a bottom lip surface 104. The lip 100 may extendoutwardly over a top surface 13 of the vertical structure 12 such thatthe bottom lip surface 104 abuts the top surface 13 of the verticalstructure 12. This serves to prevent vertical slippage during setup,keep the edge form system 10 in place during pouring of the concretefill 16, and throughout the curing process. The top lip surface 102, asshown in FIG. 5, has a generally rounded shape, though other shapes arepossible, such as rectangular, triangular, or any other shape, asdetermined by those skilled in the art. The bottom lip surface 104 maybe generally planar, for making good contact with the top surface 13,but texturing or other irregular shapes may also be chosen according tothose skilled in the art. As shown in this embodiment, no adhesive layeris present, though in other embodiments an adhesive layer may be presentin addition to the spring clamp 19. Similarly, no lateral kerfs areincluded in this embodiment, though in other embodiments those may bepresent as well.

One method of using the present embodiment for forming a simulated stonecoping 18, as illustrated in FIG. 5, may be to begin by mounting thepair of edge form systems 10 on the vertical structure 12 such that thelip 100 holds them in place. The spring clamp 19 may them be applied tothe form boards 30 to clamp them together against the vertical structure12.

The molded liners 20 are then placed within the liner receiver 60 of theform board 30 for each of the pair of edge form systems 10. The concretefill 16 is then poured and allowed to cure. When ready, the spring clamp19 may be removed and the two edge form systems 10 are pulled away,leaving the simulated stone coping 18. While FIG. 5 illustrates oneembodiment of the edge form system 10, those skilled in the art maydevise alternative embodiments, and these alternative or equivalent areconsidered within the scope of the present invention.

Furthermore, while this application discusses the specific use of thesystem 10 for use in the construction of a swimming pool, it may belikewise used to form a coping on any similar structures. The term“vertical structure” is hereby defined to include any part of the poolstructure (e.g., wall, tile, etc.), as well as similar structures (e.g.,a concrete countertop, decorative tops to walls or other structures,etc.).

As used in this application, the words “a,” “an,” and “one” are definedto include one or more of the referenced item unless specifically statedotherwise. Also, the terms “have,” “include,” “contain,” and similarterms are defined to mean “comprising” unless specifically statedotherwise. Furthermore, the terminology used in the specificationprovided above is hereby defined to include similar and/or equivalentterms, and/or alternative embodiments that would be considered obviousto one skilled in the art given the teachings of the present patentapplication.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a pair of edge form systems,each comprising: a molded liner comprising: an inner surface and anouter surface connected by a top edge and a bottom edge; a texturedimprinting on the inner surface for forming the simulated stone coping;and a first interlocking element; and a form board comprising: a basefor mounting the form board on the vertical structure; a coping supportwall for supporting the molded liner; and a second interlocking elementshaped to interlock with the first interlocking element of the moldedliner for securing the molded liner to the form board; and a springclamp for clamping the pair of edge form systems together.
 2. An edgeform system for forming a simulated stone coping above a verticalstructure, the edge form system comprising: a molded liner comprising:an inner surface and an outer surface connected by a top edge and abottom edge; a textured imprinting on the inner surface for forming thesimulated stone coping; and a first interlocking element; and a formboard comprising: a base for mounting the form board on the verticalstructure; a coping support wall for supporting the molded liner; and asecond interlocking element shaped to interlock with the firstinterlocking element of the molded liner for securing the molded linerto the form board.
 3. The edge form system of claim 2, wherein the baseincludes a top surface that is adjacent to and generally perpendicularto a support surface of the coping support wall.
 4. The edge form systemof claim 2, wherein the first interlocking element is a ridge extendingoutwardly from the molded liner, and wherein the second interlockingelement is a groove formed in the form board.